To be honest, I’m really sick of hearing about drop ship fees. I think they are absurd and, as a brewer, I refuse to pay them. The vast majority of reputable hop brokers charge no such fee. Here’s what you need to know about drop ship fees on The Lupulin Exchange:
We don’t tolerate them.
Buyers: If a seller attempts to pass along a drop ship fee, they aren’t playing by the rules to which they’ve agreed. You are only obligated to pay for shipping. Never pay any reimbursement request that includes a drop ship fee and be sure to give the seller a bad rating if they’ve sent you such a request.
Sellers: If you are selling hops warehoused at a broker, there are 2 possible scenarios - your broker is registered on The Exchange or your broker is not registered on The Exchange. (Registered brokers appear in our broker drop down menu when you create a listing.) None of the brokers registered on The Exchange charge a drop ship fee (this is a requirement for broker registration). If you list hops warehoused at an unregistered broker, you’ll get the following warning before you agree to post:
Notice the next to last sentence: Buyers are not responsible for drop ship fees or other charges your broker may add. You can also read more about this at our helpdesk.
Two final pieces of advice for sellers:
- If you try to pass a drop ship fee on to a buyer, they will not pay it and you will receive a bad rating. Follow the rules you’ve agreed to play by - you have no excuse to do otherwise.
- Grow a pair. Challenge your broker if this fee wasn’t previously disclosed and agreed upon. Is there a drop ship fee in your contract? Did you enter into a binding contract with your broker and have both parties been performing in accordance with its terms? Haven’t you relied on those terms, and isn’t any attempt to materially change those terms a breach of your contract…which causes you damage?